Monthly Update

With Mike (not pictured!), Brodie and Lorna last Saturday

Hello friends and supporters....it's been about a month since I last posted, so time for a quick update.  In the health department, almost everything is good news....still no signs of cancer returning, but I am still struggling with 3 annoying things....1) my immunoglobulin levels are still low (but rising!) - I get an infusion once a month to boost this - it's an element in the immune system that involves anti-bodies...2) my sinuses are infected (again) - I saw an ENT specialist a couple of weeks ago and he's got me on a couple of antibiotics to try to clear me up.  This is clearly a persistent thing that is just hanging around a lot...and beginning to be a concern, in terms of how we get rid of it for good...it's probably part of what caused the fevers I had in November and December.  3) I've developed a chronic neck pain (of all things) over the past many months, that will not go away.  My neck sounds like a bowl of Rice Krispies.  It hasn't kept me from doing anything, but the fact that it won't clear up is becoming, yes, annoying.  So all that adds up to "I'm doing sensational".

I'm getting accustomed to the work routine at IBM, but my recent fevers and continuing sinus infections have kept me off of airplanes for the most part.  Planning for the big hike - 250+ miles in total - is well underway;  Mike and I have done 4 training hikes, one every other weekend.  I can really feel the improvement in my feet, hips, and shoulders.  I wasn't sure if I could prepare my body for 10 miles a day for 25 days, but it seems that there is a lot of muscle and joint memory even with 2 weeks off between hikes.  In my last 2 hikes I carried 35 pounds, but  I need to be comfortable with 45 over 10 to 12 miles before the trip - and be able to wake up the next day with minimal pain and discomfort.  We will increase the frequency of the training hikes over the coming months.

Other plans are coming together as the calendar requires - we have plane tickets purchased and a ride arranged and confirmed from Fresno Airport to Yosemite Valley on the 12th of August.  February 26th is the day that we need to apply for our trail permits - they are assigned by a lottery system exactly 6 months from the day your hike begins.  The permit system controls the number of backpackers in any given part of the park at a time, and ensures a true wilderness solitude for all.

Regarding the 250 miles...the JMT is officially measured as 211 miles, from Happy Isles at the head of Yosemite Valley, to the official trail's end on the summit of Mount Whitney.  Most people quote the length of the trail as 221, because they count the 10 miles from the top of Whitney to the trailhead at Whitney Portal.  We are not exiting the wilderness by that route, we are  going down the Pacific Crest Trail for an additional 33 miles, making our trip approximately 211+33=244 trail miles.  Throwing in the miles I will log stalking wild trout at day's beginning or end, and we will hoof it well over 250.

I continue to remember and mark anniversaries, and a year ago this weekend my sister Jill was visiting in Houston, acting as my caregiver while Renee got a week off, and got to go home to Raleigh.  We went out to Galveston for dinner on her birthday - what a precious memory of a special week.  I am thankful every day for this invaluable experience and the opportunity to serve God in ways I never imagined.  Please support me in my cause to help cure leukemia and lymphoma, as you are led.

JMT Fund Raising Page

With Jill, February 1, 2012

Sofie and Eva - Young Survivors

From the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Website - I LOVE THIS PICTURE

Greetings and a Happy Friday to alla ya'll.....I continue to be super-fired up about my mission to help in the fight to cure lymphoma and leukemia - I saw this video which is on the LLS website and it really hit home....any childhood disease is devastating, and this story shows that children are being cured, but not all of them.  Your help is critical- thanks so much to those of you who have given - including the matching donations from our anonymous donor, we are over the $30,000 mark!!  Mike and I will be doing another training hike this Sunday.  My bod was very unhappy after my last one :-)

Check out this video -

 Eva's Story

And if you have time, check out the LLS website - or bookmark it and come back later....who knows, one day you might even see my story there.

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society - Someday is Today

HOLY MEGA GENEROUS DONATION, BATMAN!!!

Recent goofy self-portrait that seemed appropriate for this post

 Friends and supporters, I have amazing news....hold onto your hats.....this week, an anonymous donor has pledged to match, dollar for dollar, all contributions made up to this point ($13,775), and additionally, match all future contributions in the same manner up to the unthinkable amount of $100,000!!  Of course I am stunned and amazed by this kind of generosity.  This brings into view the possibility of doing something really extraordinary, and imbues my trip to the High Sierra, the John Muir Trail, with additional significance and impact in the quest for a cure.  So - any gift, of any size, is critical, and with this pledge, it's impact will be DOUBLED.
  
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|| Click HERE  to go my Leukemia and Lymphoma fund-raising site  ||
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To those of you who have already donated, another big THANK YOU!!  Those of you who are still considering making a donation - know that there is no hurry.  There is a long time before I hit the trail, so please take your time and consider everything carefully.  Prayer support is equally, if not more important, than financial giving, and I am just as grateful for that.

I also want to announce today that my younger sister, Jill DiCicco, will be joining my team - Jill is thinking about the possibility of holding a pledge drive of some sort at the school where she teaches in Aurora, IL.  Welcome Jill!!

PS... "joining my team" means joining in my fund raising efforts, not making the hike with me - I got some feedback that there was some confusion on that!  More soon - Dan

Kenyon and I at Yosemite, 2008 - Tenaya Lake in background

Merry Christmas

Santa brought me a new pair of trekking poles!

I hope it's OK to wish you all a Merry Christmas after the actual holiday.  MERRY CHRISTMAS!  We're still in the holiday season so I hope you are still celebrating.  I'm 'working' from the cancer center where I am getting an infusion of IVIG, a compound that is either actually immunoglobulin, or something that boosts the same - this is the only part of my new immune system that is not normal (yet).  I came down with another pre-holiday fever on the 21st, and the same antibiotics that punched out my Thanksgiving fever did their thing again - I was fever-free by Christmas eve.

We had a small gathering on the 21st to celebrate my one-year anniversary since the transplant.  I'm in a  very cool place now in my recovery, where the odds of a relapse are going down as I move into my 2nd year.  My re-staging checks will be spaced out to 6 months this year, and I hope my blood checks will also get spaced out, maybe to a month or so.  Unfortunately I've had two fevers within the space of a month, so I'm puzzling over what has caused that...I have had what I call cold symptoms for a long time without fever, so what has changed could be the fact of going to work daily and seeing lots of people, many of whom may have sick kids....plus the stress of the new job.....anyway I need to stay healthy and figure this out.  I did get good news on my counts when I had labs drawn on Wednesday the 26th....counts were excellent.

Mike (my hiking partner) and I are already getting fired up about our JMT hike - we sat out behind his house last night talking about the trip - he has a fire pit in back, perfect for strategizing and dreaming about the JMT.  We plan to do our 1st training hike this Sunday - 10 miles with about 30 lbs of backpack weight.  Not much more to report.  I am planning my first international business trip which will take me to HongKong, Shenzhen (sister city to HK but over the old border), then Singapore for a few days, then the long trip home.  More soon....Dan

Christmas Day, 2011

Dear Friends, today is a BIG DAY.  One year ago today, I received NEW LIFE in the form of a stem cell transplant - stem cells that were donated by my sister, Laure.

So the big news......that I am announcing today.....is that I have committed to hike the full length of the John Muir Trail in August of this year, and hopefully become the first stem cell transplant patient to do so, and the first Richter's survivor to do so.  This is a 212 mile trail, one of the most scenic in the world - it traces the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountains from Yosemite National Park southward through the Ansel Adams Wilderness, Kings Canyon National Park, and Sequoia National Park.  My longtime friend, Mike Nix, has joined me and will be my partner throughout the training and the hike.  I have 4 goals:

•  To raise a significant amount of money for the pursuit of CURES for blood cancers
•  To encourage and inspire blood cancer patients in their fight 
•  To fulfill a lifelong dream to hike the most scenic trail in the world
•  To bring glory to God for what He has done   

With the help of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, I have a fund raising blog open now at:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nc/frndstnt13/dkrooker         <----------CHECK IT OUT!!

Mike's fundraising page is here:  http://pages.teamintraining.org/nc/frndstnt13/mnixwc  (under construction)


I have a team of supporters, which I hope will grow - a team member just has to be enthusiastic about raising money to fight leukemia and lymphoma, and be willing to support my fundraising efforts along the way.  Right now my team includes:

Renee Rooker
Mike Nix (hiking and training partner)
Laure Rooker McKenna
Jeff Williams (buddy-for-life)
Harry Rooker (dad)
Tiffany Drummond Armstrong, Executive Director of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of NC

If you want to join the team - just let me know!  I cannot tell you how excited I am about this project.  Help me spread the word!  Dan

Giving Thanks

Getting a boost of anti-EBV t-cells at the Baylor College of Medicine

Hello friends and family....it's been an up-and-down week.  I've been fighting a fever and sinus infection since Sunday morning, and a couple of times, my fever got high enough that we were getting ready to go the hospital. - but each time it backed off a bit, and we kept a bag packed.  I've been without the fever  now for 36 hours or so, so we're hopeful that the latest antibiotic is doing the job.  On the big plus side, I heard Wednesday that the bone marrow biopsy was found to be normal, which is great news :-) !!

My parents have been here since Monday...unfortunately it's been kinda like a sick ward, as my son Kenyon has also been suffering with fevers and bronchitis.  Nonetheless, we had a traditional Thanksgiving dinner yesterday and enjoyed a beautiful fall day here.  The football was plentiful and exciting, too.

Who I'm most thankful for 

Well, that's about it...we hope you had a great thanksgiving, if you celebrate it, and if you don't celebrate it, you should start - everyone has something to be thankful for.  A year ago, Renee and I were making preparations to go to Houston for my transplant.  What has transpired in the past year - valleys, hilltops, being uplifted by so many friends, family members, strangers....is nothing short of a miracle.  I am so thankful for what the Lord has shown me and how He carried me through these troubled waters.  I owe everything to Him.  May He be with you this Christmas season.

Shiloh getting a bird's eye view

With Alice and Coy at Dr. Keating's office yesterday

Hello friends and family and followers....a quick update from Houston - by the smiles in the photo above, you can tell that the news was good - great actually!  The PET and CT scans were negative, and we are thanking the Lord for these wonderful results.  We were also blessed yesterday by the reaction of my entire medical team - including Erin and Dr. Hosing over in transplant - to how well I am doing, just 11 months after transplant - they were amazed at how healthy I look - of course I don't see myself that way, but it's a real blessing to have them fuss over it,a nd it makes me realize more and more how blessed I am. 

So we are THANKFUL, THANKFUL, THANKFUL to the Lord and King Jesus, without whom nothing is possible.  I have to run now to get an infusion of T-cells - originally from Laure, but they have been put through a rigorous training program and will do a search-and-destroy mission on any lymphoma cells that dare try to mount a threat to me.  Love to all - Dan